


Suda and the Blind Date

by MalthusIndex



Series: Sex and The Syndicates [1]
Category: Warframe
Genre: F/F, Human Suda, Multi, Slice of Life, Wholesome, everything is dumb, probably some gay stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-21
Updated: 2020-01-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:53:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22309729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MalthusIndex/pseuds/MalthusIndex
Summary: Now that peace has been established in the Origin System, Cephalon Suda decides that a blind date might be just the thing to get her back in the mingling game. It goes horribly... right?
Relationships: Cephalon Suda/OC Grineer
Series: Sex and The Syndicates [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1647001
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	Suda and the Blind Date

**Author's Note:**

> (Yes, this particular story is for a specific person who likes another one of my accidentally-created OC characters).

As much as Suda loved her work, she just couldn’t turn down an opportunity to relax at the end of a particularly tough research session. Some of them would keep her up for several days in a row, relying on synthetic stimulant beverages and a handful of power naps to stop herself from going mad. In this particular case, she had been studying the Grineer cloning process – not for any particular reason, but just to see what kind of developments it could lead to. It was technically part of her job, after all. Or… was. Even though she still had her body, some of the key memories of her past were always just out of reach, getting mixed in with her present self’s thoughts. It was… difficult for her.

This time, she wouldn’t be eating alone. Taking another leap into the great unknown, she had set up another blind date, this time inviting them directly over to her personal quarters on the Relay. She didn’t have much, but it was better than hanging around outside Darvo’s and having to avoid the judging gazes of New Loka operatives. It also gave her an excuse to enjoy her own cooking for a change, which was quite a rare event, given her busy schedule. She was lucky if she managed to eat anything more than a snack bar before she would jump right back to work.

Her date this time was… well, a _blind_ one. She had no idea what to expect, other than that she was female and currently living on the same Relay. As long as it wasn’t Amaryn, it would probably go well. She just had to stay calm, be friendly and provide a decent meal, and see how things developed from there. Simple.

Taking a careful look at the clock on her wall, she stepped over to a nearby mirror and adjusted her clothing slightly. Her personal style was always a little bit _off_ compared to current fashion, but at least it painted an honest picture of her. Mostly darker-grey items of clothing, with a long white cloak that stretched all the way to the ground: a holdover of her time as the… well, yes, she didn’t really like to think about it. It definitely stood out compared to most of the other Relay-dwellers, but she had no problem with that, and it made her status as an Archimedian more obvious. That, and the cloak matched her white hair, which she had always found a little bit amusing at her own expense.

According to her clock, her date would arrive in only a few minutes. The table had already been prepared: since she didn’t know the date ahead of time, she had multiple meals ready to serve, just in case. The plates were out, her wine was ready to be uncorked, and the mood lighting had been set. Now she just needed the other person to actually show up, and there a small amount of doubt in her mind about whether they would even appear. It wouldn’t be the first time she had been burned by a no-show, unfortunately.

She was starting to fidget now. The exact time they had arranged was only about a minute away, and she was fretting over everything about the impression she would be making. Even for a woman of her stature, a small mistake could ruin the first sight her date saw, and she was incredibly focused on presenting herself in the best light possible. She even began to try and line up the cutlery on the table, just in case – even the smallest error would feel like a gigantic mistake.

The Archimedian’s nervous focus was interrupted by a series of three chimes coming from a speaker near her front door, indicating that somebody wanted to be let inside. The noise instantly set her pulse slightly higher than normal as she started to panic about her date arriving, even though she had spent at least two hours preparing for it. That always seemed to be the case: no matter how long she spent readying herself for one of these blind dates, she always started to crumble the second the other person actually made it to their meeting place.

Brushing the dust off her cloak and nervously making her way to the front door of her Relay quarters, Suda took a deep breath and pressed the locking button, switching its lights from red to blue as it slid open. Standing in front of her was a massive Grineer woman, well above her own height and clearly comprised of more machine than flesh at this point. Her mismatched brown and grey armour and cybernetics only served to enhance her size further, making her seem even larger than most Eximus soldiers. Perhaps she actually was, but Suda was slightly too terrified to make any kind of estimates.

“Uh… hi. Are you Suda?”

The already-panicking Archimedian felt her jaw nearly drop open at the realisation that her date had just arrived. She… _wasn’t_ expecting a Grineer, especially not one so _huge_.

“Oh, yes, that’s me! I’m Suda! And you are…?”

“Ex-General Vam Kula. I’m new here, I’ve only been at the Relay for about a week.”

Suda genuinely hadn’t seen her before. She would have remembered her, like many of the other distinctive figures that sometimes turned up in the area. Her memory could be bad, but it wasn’t _that_ bad, at least not anymore.

“W-well, come on in! It’s nice to meet a new face, Miss Kula!”

For some reason, her hands felt uncomfortably sweaty, but she wasn’t entirely sure what was causing it. A combination of fear and surprise, most likely, mixed in with some other feelings she couldn’t really describe in her head. Stepping away from the door and leading the larger woman into her quarters, she suddenly started to notice all the little flaws in her home – the scuffed pieces of carpet, the mismatched decorations, the books that were barely even in alphabetical order. Her nerves were off the charts.

“So!” She clapped her hands together gently, in an effort to seem calm and fully in control of the situation. “Before we get into anything, I, um… I should let you know that I made food! I hope it’s something you can eat, I’m not very familiar with Grineer cuisine.”

“I’m sure it will be fine. I was… not expecting you to have cooked.”

“That’s sort of the point, isn’t it? It wouldn’t be a blind date if I didn’t try to make the best impression I could!”

They moved through to Suda’s dining room, which was also her living room – even somebody of her status still had limited space on the Relay, and her quarters were no exception. Using her datascape to simulate something more extravagant and spacious was an option, but it wouldn’t be _real,_ and she didn’t want people to see her as ‘just a Cephalon’ anymore. Getting her body back had been a start, but it would take more than a physical change to socially re-assert herself.

She pulled out one of her chairs for the Grineer woman and let her sit down first, mentally panicking over the fact that she could actually be too heavy for it. Thankfully, she wasn’t, but the amount of cybernetics and muscles – natural or otherwise – on her body made it seem like a very close call. Nervously pacing over to her own chair and sitting down, she pulled herself into the table, satisfied that it looked nice enough for the occasion.

“So, General Kula… how has your day been so far?”

The larger woman flashed a little smile, her one exposed eye making eye contact with Suda. The other was presumably doing the same, but given that she was wearing a metal patch, it might not have even been there at all.

“Grineer are still a sensitive subject on these Relays. Since I am Grineer, I have to spend most of each day staying away from big crowds. Not many people trust me.”

“And you think that’s unfair?”

“No, the opposite. It is perfectly fair. During my command as General, I caused the deaths of thousands on both sides of the war. If that makes you uncomfortable, I understand.”

Suda was a bit taken aback by her honesty. Even Simaris, the dictionary definition of ‘speaking bluntly’, would try to conceal something if he knew that it reflected badly on him. This Vam Kula woman was being upfront in a very… _different_ way. Maybe the Grineer indoctrination did that, but it could just be her personality. Trying to change the subject and get her thoughts back on track, the Archimedian glanced down at the table and noticed that the plates were still empty.

“Oh, I should get the food. Do Grineer have any… _issues_ with eating certain things?”

“No, as long as it does not taste like my old rations. I have had to stomach that taste for years.”

Smiling at the other woman, Suda quickly rushed off to her kitchen, grabbing a couple of the plates and making sure that she piled a bit more onto the General’s. It only took her about ten seconds, but she was constantly worried that her guest was getting bored. Still, by the time she returned to the table, Kula seemed just as patient as before.

“Here you go! I’m not the best cook, but I tried to do the best with the ingredients I had. A lot of the meat is Ostron, but I’ve also been able to buy some nice vegetables from the Corpus, of all people.”

“Impressive. I do not recognise many of these ingredients, but my experience with food is limited.”

“Why? What do the Grineer actually eat? I don’t think I’ve ever even heard of them consuming food.”

“Grineer eat whatever Grineer can eat. That may include other Grineer. Frontier troops on Earth got Kubrow and Kuaka. On Mars, Desert Skates. Ceres food was… unpleasant.” She picked up her knife – which looked like a toy in her big metal arms – and pulled off a piece of the meat on her plate, slowly popping it into her mouth and chewing.

“I hope you like that – it’s meat from the Unum, straight from Cetus. They don’t sell it to outsiders often, since it’s very sacred to them, but my connection to the Tenno made it easier to acquire. I don’t think they thought it would end up in a Grineer’s meal, though.”

The Grineer nodded slowly, swallowing. “It is a good thing our men never breached the Cetus walls. If the tower tastes this good, we would have eaten it in two days.” She chuckled, cutting off another piece to eat. Suda couldn’t tell if she was actually joking, since the Grineer probably _would_ devour the entire structure if they needed to. “Suda, may I ask what you do for a living?”

“My job? I’m an Achemidian, a scholar. I don’t know what the equivalent would be in Grineer society, a… scientist, maybe. I study the universe and the things in it, then commit my research to archives and use them to solve whatever problems I can.”

“A scientist. We had several among our ranks during my time as General, but they were not as friendly as you are. Many of them were quite arrogant.”

“Yes, I suppose the Grineer scientists _would_ be. Just look your cybernetic parts, those can’t have been pleasant to install.”

“They were installed on order from the Queens themselves. I was the ‘test body’ for the creation of what Tenno call them Kuva Liches. Mine are only prototypes, but they are very similar in design.”

“Kuva Liches…?”

“Yes. Do you not know them?”

Suda had drifted off in thought for a moment. “No! Yes, I mean, yes, I know them! Better than many people think I do.”

“Because of your research?”

“Y…yes, my research. Yes. They have been an enemy to the Tenno that I’ve enjoyed researching, but I never thought that their cybernetics would be incorporated into other Grineer. It makes sense that they had a place to test the prototypes, I just didn’t think it would be you.”

“Do you need to study me, too?”

Doing her best to avoid spitting out her drink, Suda almost began coughing and managed to swallow before her surprise got the better of her. “ _Excuse_ me?”

“Your research. My prototype limbs and enhancements might be entirely unique compared to the ones used on these ‘Liches’.”

“Oh. _Oh_ , yes, of course. I… would be happy to study them later, if you give me permission.”

“As long as they are still on my body when I leave, I have no problem with that.”

“I’ll have to look into that at some point.” Trying to change the subject away from Kuva Liches, Suda redirected the conversation back towards her guest. “So, Kula… how come you answered a blind date request? Romance? Friendship? Or did you just want to give it a try?”

Eating another piece of the meat, the General paused to think for a moment. “The life of a Grineer general is a lonely one. A small fraction of clones are capable of independent thought, and an even smaller fraction express desires of their own. Only nine of my men and women were ever capable of seeing me as a friend. The others did not understand the concept.”

“Oh, so you’re lonely, is that it?”

The Grineer put down her cutlery and looked Suda in the eyes, letting out a heavy-hearted sigh. “Yes. I am lonely. I do not mean that as a demand for help: it is simply a fact. I did not come to this blind date with any expectations. You?”

Suda was surprised by the simple question. The bluntness of Kula’s speech was both a blessing and a curse, since it moved the conversation along but didn’t leave her with much time to think of answers. Feeling her face heat up slightly, she picked up her glass of Corpus wine, swishing it around slightly. “Friendship, companionship, romance and boredom, I suppose. Mostly romance. As a Cephalon, I didn’t mind, but getting back a real body reminds me of all the time I spent with… well, I won’t dwell on that. I miss having a lover, whether it’s a spouse or just a short-term relationship.”

“I understand. Can I ask a question?”

“Of course. Ask away!”

“Which of those would I be suitable for?”

Suda felt her face get even hotter. Again, with the blunt questions. She had only met this Grineer about ten minutes ago, and she was already asking for those kind of opinions?

“W-well, I would need to know you better. But I’m open to all of those things! You seem… pleasant enough. You haven’t tried to preach Grineer superiority to me, so I could see myself spending more time with you.”

Kula picked up her glass of wine too, taking a quick sip. “We have time tonight. I will leave whenever you ask me to leave, but I am happy to stay for longer once this meal is over.”

“Alright. That sounds fun! It would be nice to have some company for a change.”

= = =

Suda quietly collected the plates from the table, feeling a genuine smile creep onto her face at the fact that Kula had eaten all of her food. Either she was a great cook, or Kula was so starved for good food that it didn’t matter. The best way to a woman’s heart is through her stomach, after all. If Kula still even _had_ both of those organs – it wasn’t something she had wanted to ask about at the dinner table.

“What did you think? Was it tasty enough?”

“Suda, even the food I ate during visits with the Queens was not as good as that meal. It is… nice to have eaten something prepared with care for a change.”

“You liked it?” Suda was trying to stay calm and collected, but she was overjoyed that her food had left a good impression. “I have more, if you’d like some!”

“No, but thank you very much.” The Grineer stood up and stretched, clearly satisfied with what she had eaten. “Grineer are engineered to be tough, but our stomachs still have limits.”

“I’m glad to hear that! So, what now? What do Grineer normally do for fun?”

Suda took the plates to the kitchen as she watched Kula think to herself, still coming down off the high of eating such nice food. The Grineer was intimidating, but still kinder than she had expected, and her honesty was refreshing after having to argue with Amaryn of the New Loka syndicate for weeks on end. She had no idea what the General would actually want to do next, but she had a few ideas just in case.

“Many Grineer struggle to maintain hobbies. While I was a General, my only hobby was collecting trophies from cleared battlegrounds. Do you have any suggestions?”

“Well, I’m still a Cephalon, in a way. I could show you how the datascape works, or simulate something for you. Or, if that’s not really entertaining, we could just… talk?”

Kula seemed to be weighing the two options up. It made sense – she was probably used to having to make all kinds of very specific decisions, being a General, and that probably carried over into the less important social choices she made. “Talking would be nice. I do not know much about you, Suda. Learning more about each other would benefit us both.”

“If that’s what you prefer. Anyway, you were a General? Of the entire Grineer army?

“No. Only a small portion. Generals in the Grineer are not all-powerful. We only command certain areas of space and specific amounts of manpower. Exceptions are made for the rich, powerful or extremely intelligent, but rarely.”

“So… a General is just a good soldier?”

“Yes and no. Generals get better lives overall. Nothing as good as the Tenno, but more than your average Lancer. I was still at the mercy of the Queens.”

“Well, that sounds… terrible, but at least you could get away from that life. Actually, speaking of life… I’ve asked a lot of questions about your life, Kula. Is there anything you would like to ask about me?”

“Yes, there is _one_ question. Why are you so nervous?”

Was she nervous? Suda couldn’t tell, it felt like it was just hot in here. At least she wasn’t sweating… from the heat, of course, and nothing else. “Nervous? What makes you say I’m nervous?”

“It has been quite clear. I do not mean that in an offensive way, I am just concerned. Am I intimidating you?”

“Well… yes, actually, but… not in the way you might be expecting.”

“What do you mean?”

The Archimedian chuckled nervously to herself, unsure exactly how to phrase her response. She was feeling a lot of strange opinions about this Grineer woman, and not all of them were comfortable for her to put into context. “Well, you’re… intimidating, but in a good way. Do you know what I mean?”

“A good way. What good way?”

“Well, I am a fairly mild, quiet person, but that doesn’t mean I prefer the company of people like me. You’re large, mostly mechanical and very… direct. I find those all quite…”

“Quite what?”

Suda almost grabbed the bottle of wine from the dinner table, but decided to just be honest with herself instead. “…attractive. I find those things attractive. I have always had an interest in larger, stronger women, and even before I was a Cephalon, I had a _deep appreciation_ in biomechanics and augmentations.” Now she was the one being blunt, mainly to distract her mind from what she was actually saying. “Your large augmented body is definitely one that I am… attracted to.”

“I… understand. I find it difficult to believe, but I understand.”

“Look… Kula, I’m sorry, that all just kind of came out.” She was incredibly embarrassed – especially since they had only just met this afternoon.

“Do not be. I appreciate the honesty. I do not have time for lies and fabrications in my short life.” The Grineer awkwardly placed one cybernetic hand on Suda’s shoulder – the Archimedian was a little bit terrified, but unlike most of her peers, this Vam Kula woman seemed oddly patient. “I am glad that you told me.”

The two stood there for a moment, neither of them knowing what to say next. After a few seconds, Suda pulled away, moving carefully to avoid stepping on her own cloak and tripping over. She gently made her way to one of her many bookshelves and took a quick look through the various works it contained, not looking for anything in particular. Satisfied that she had waited for the conversation to _reset_ , so to speak, she turned around and faced the Grineer again and smiled.

“What now? Is there anything we should do? You’re the guest here, after all!”

“Suda, you are sweating.”

 _She was?_ The Archimedian hadn’t noticed at all. “It must be the heat. These Relays get hot, don’t they?”

“This is your home. You have control over the heat levels here.”

“Um… yes. Yes, of course. And I turned it up, because I like the heat. That’s why I’m sweating.” She knew she seemed like an extremely weird dork by saying that, but it was better than the alternative…

“Suda. I just told you that I have no time for lies. Is something wrong?”

Well, she was cornered. At least she could make the best of it.

“I’m… struggling, Kula. I don’t know if you would understand.”

“I am willing to try.” The Grineer stepped closer, her metal feet making a surprisingly soft impact sound on her flooring.

“I have been alone for a long time. My… previous love may still be out there, somewhere, but she has not returned for a long time. On its own, that isn’t a problem, but now that you’re here…” She panicked, trying to think of a suitable way to cap off the sentence that didn’t make her look like even more of a fool. “…you’re making me think things that I shouldn’t be thinking. About trying to move on. And… _other things_ that I would rather not admit out loud.”

She was so embarrassed that she barely even noticed Kula stepping closer. The Archimedian nearly squealed in surprise as she felt the other woman take her hand and hold onto it, not too gently but not too tight. “Like I said, I am willing to try. We have not known each other long. It would be… socially uncomfortable to become anything more than friends at this moment. But if you have a genuine attraction to me, then I can remember it for the future.”

That was an… oddly worded response. “Wait, what? What are you saying, exactly?”

Smiling, the Grineer gripped her hand a little bit tighter. “I am saying that I understand.”

= = =

Suda didn’t really remember much of what happened after that. It was… quite a ride. She remembered a few details, like the fact that they drank the entirety of that bottle of wine and ended up setting her door to ‘do not disturb’ mode for… the entire night? It was difficult to tell if that had happened at the start of the night, or at the end.

Opening her eyes, she found herself lying upside-down on her bed, facing towards the bedroom door. Kula was nowhere to be found – whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, she couldn’t tell – and a lot of her body hurt. More than it usually did.

Groaning at the way her brain seemed to drag behind her she sat up, the Archimedian rubbed her eyes with one hand and tried to keep her balance with another. The room had finally begun to settle instead of spinning and twisting like before, but she still felt like she had been beaten up by a gang of Ventkids, then run over with their K-Drives.

“Kula?”

No response. It was only now that Suda noticed she was clothed differently – in fact, the only thing left on her body was her signature cloak. Gasping slightly at the shock of seeing herself in such a state, she quickly wrapped it around her body and went to check the other rooms for any signs of her… _guest_.

“Vam? Are you still here?”

She was lying face-up in the middle of the living room, her cybernetics moving as she continued to breathe (and, occasionally, snore). From the looks of her, she had been… well… she seemed exhausted, at any rate. It was probably best to leave her there. Whatever had happened last night was worth discussing in person.

Heading through to her kitchen, Suda quickly grabbed a mug of her favourite Tenno coffee and went to sit back on the bed, wanting nothing more than to fully wake up for the day ahead.


End file.
